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Bookmarked Podcast number 300: “Adversarial Interoperability: Reviving an Elegant Weapon From a More Civilized Age to Slay Today’s Monopolies” by Cory Doctorow

Adversarial Interoperability, a useful concept to keep in mind. In part the IndieWeb is a form of this, as it offers a way of staying outside walled gardens, while still being able to pass messages back and forth through its gates (i.e. API’s), through POSSE / sometimes PESOS. Though some platforms, Facebook actually, made the ‘counter offer’ of switching off their API’s. Twitter similarly has been on a path of absorbing into itself all kinds of apps (e.g. Tweetdeck) that were independent parts of the ecosystem growing on Twitter’s API, and increasing the threshold for access to the API.

Interoperability is a core value to maintain. Use it.

Adversarial interoperability is the consumer’s bargaining chip in these coercive “negotiations.” More than a quarter of Internet users have installed ad-blockers, making it the biggest consumer revolt in human history. These users are making counteroffers: the platforms say, “We want all of your data in exchange for this service,” and their users say, “How about none?” Now we have a negotiation!

Cory Doctorow

One reaction on “Adversarial Interoperability”

  1. Much easier than regulating to break up Facebook, just regulate to force them to make an API for us to get data in and out. We can break them up ourselves once we have that. (source)

    Neil is right, an effective way to break-up big tech monopolies is requiring they have API‘s. (Much like key government data sets across the EU will be required to have API’s from 2021 based on the 2019 PSI Directive)
    A monopolistic platform that has an API will be effectively broken up by its users and by app builders as they will interact with bits and pieces from various platforms as they see fit.
    That FB and Twitter e.g. have been on a path over steadily reducing public API access over time shows you the truth of that.
    (Adversarial) interoperability and standards are key elements in avoiding vendor lock-ins. This is true for ‘smart home’ appliance silos just as much as for webservices.
    If you don’t have an API you’re not a platform (platforms are after all bases to build/grow things on, if you stunt that ability you’re not a platform). If you’re not a platform, you’re fully liable for your user uploaded content. How’s that for a trade-off?
    All platforms should be required to join the API family…
    Picture taken earlier this month at La Folie de Finfarine in Poiroux

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